The Future Heir Of Deltora
by homesweethomicide13
Summary: AnnaLiam. Sequel to 'The Future King Of Deltora'. Liam misses his family, but Anna has news for him. Barda, Leif, Jasmine and Lindal are going to be grandparents. [Oneshot]


Author's Note: Sequel to Future King Of Deltora. I'd already had this written and couldn't wait to post it, so I thought 'why not?'

Pairing: Anna/Liam (Hints at Leif/Jasmine, Barda/Lindal)

Disclaimer: Do not own. (Except Liam, and the rest of Barda/Lindal kids.)

* * *

Future Heir Of Deltora

* * *

Anna watched her husband with a smile. He was sat in the palace library, writing a letter to his family back in Broome. It had been a month since they had married, and he had not seen them since. She knew it was hard for him – having spent his twenty years among them, in Broome, living alone in the forge was really taking its toll upon the young man. He spent most of his time in the library or in the palace gardens, deep in thought. He wasn't used to the strange quiet atmosphere that surrounded the family in the forge. Liam was used to the constant fighting and bickering of his sixteen-year-old twin brothers Jay and Joeley. He was used to having to drag his nineteen-year-old sister Mariah out of the bathroom. He missed the comforting hugs from his eleven-year-old twin brother and sister Kade and Divinity. He missed his mother Lindal. 

And though he would rarely admit it, he missed his father, Barda. He wasn't used to the palace ways, like she was. He missed the normality of living in the coastal city of Broome. He didn't fit in with the richly dressed nobles of the palace. In fact, Anna thought, he fit in more with the servants, and the lesser workers. Looking at him now, Anna noticed that even in royal clothes, Liam still managed to look like one of the servants. The stiff collar of his jacket had been turned out slightly at the corners, exposing the lightly tanned skin of his neck and throat. The long sleeves had been rolled up to his elbows, and the jacket was undone. The shirt beneath was one he had brought from Broome, and stood out against the rich jacket. His chin-length hair was untidy and stuck out at odd angles at the back. He looked ragged and scruffy, but she wouldn't have him any other way.

"Are you going to join me, or are you going to stand there a little while longer?" Liam looked up from his letter, his long fringe flopping carelessly over his eyes. A smile spread across his face, and Anna returned it. She moved to sit beside him, and he took her hand. "I hope you don't mind, but I invited them to the feast at the end of this week." He told her, giving her his best innocent look. She smiled and kissed him.

"They are your family, Liam, and mine. They will always be welcome." The hand in hers tightened and he put down the quill he had been writing with. Anna chanced a glance at the paper, and smiled again at the state of it. Liam still hadn't got used to using something as fancy as a quill to write with. She turned her eyes to her husband, and the smile faded. "Are you okay?" Liam's eyes had darkened and he was staring at the table, his free hand clenched tightly into a fist. He bowed his head further and closed his eyes, trying to hold back the tears he knew were building up. He didn't want to cry. Not in front of Anna, especially.

"I'm fine." He said quietly, but he knew the tone of his voice said otherwise. He took a deep breath and tried again. "I'm okay, really." He looked at her and smiled. "I guess I'm just a little homesick."

"I know you are, but that's okay. You're not used to living away from home. I would be the same in your position." She reassured him, leaning against him. "If I were not the Princess, I would have gone with you to Broome, like your father did for your mother." Liam laughed quietly.

"More like he went to Broome because if he didn't, my mother would have beaten him half to death." He placed a kiss on her forehead and grinned. "I never understood their relationship, you know. She's more like the husband than he is."

"You do have odd parents, true enough. But then again, they are the fabled Lindal of Broome, and Barda the Bear." Anna laughed. "What? Did you expect a normal family?"

"Now I do." He grinned. "We can have a normal family."

"Liam, when my father dies – and I hope that is not until many years away – I will become Queen. You married the future queen, and thus you are the future king. It is impossible for us to have a _normal_ family!" She grinned up at him. And from the look in his eyes, she could tell that Liam didn't mind that fact one bit. And she hid her secret well. She wanted to wait for the perfect time to tell him.

* * *

It was time for the feast, and guests were arriving every second. Sharn and Doom were showing them to their allocated seats. Anna stood with Liam at the end of the hall, watching them. Liam was tense – his eyes upon the door at the opposite end. Anna knew he was awaiting his family's arrival. It couldn't have come quick enough. 

The door swung open with tremendous force, and the two warriors strode into the room, followed by their remaining five children. Barda looked strangely casual to their eyes, having only seen him in some form of uniform or suit. The beige-brown camo shorts came to just past his knees and the black dress shirt he was wearing seemed to hang off him almost delicately. His usually untidy hair was strangely tame, and he had shaved again. He looked several years younger, and Anna thought that he and Liam looked more like brothers than father and son. Speaking of her young husband, he was no longer at her side. He was among his brothers and sisters, each of them holding him tightly. The sight almost brought tears to Anna's eyes. Then he went to his parents. He was not ashamed to embrace Lindal; however he paused uncertainly when he got to Barda.

"Do not be ashamed, Liam. I refuse to make the same mistake my father did with me," She heard Barda say. "Come here." Liam went to him and gave his father a quick hug. It was clear to everyone that Liam missed his family sorely.

* * *

Towards the end of the feast, Anna felt that it was about time to reveal her secret. She stood up and hit her glass with a spoon. Instantly the room went quiet, and all eyes were upon her. She put the glass and spoon down and smiled. 

"I have wanted to reveal something to you all, but I have had to wait for the perfect moment." She paused. "As you all know, when my dear father dies, I will become Queen. Liam, as my husband," She noted that Barda's expression changed to one of pride for his son, "will become King. And thus we will need to have a child to continue the bloodline. Well, please, none of you fear, for I can tell you with delight that by the end of this year, Liam and I will be blessed with our first child."

The room stayed silent for a moment, and then people began reacting. Anna held up her hand for quiet again, and turned to Liam. He stood up and she took his hand, holding it to her stomach and smiling at him.

"This is yours, Liam. This is our child." She glanced sideways at her father, and Liam's. Leif was beaming proudly at them, his hand in Jasmine's. And Barda? Anna would swear to the day she died that there had been tears in the big man's eyes.


End file.
